Witness the Thrilling Showdown between Akron and Kent State

First Quarter Highlights

Quarterback Tahj Bullock runs for a 1-yard touchdown and Garrison Smith makes the extra point to give Akron a 10-7 lead over Kent State with 4:15 remaining. Ben Finley completed two passes for 46 yards during the drive to Adrian Norton, covering 10 yards and 36 yards. This early lead sets the tone for an exciting first quarter.

Garrison Smith then converts a 43-yard field goal for Akron, and Kent State leads 7-3 with 10:34 remaining. Akron's drive featured four running plays by Jordon Simmons that gained 20 yards. Kent State was whistled for four penalties during the drive that covered 25 yards.

Second Quarter Drama

Kent State needed just three plays on offense to take a 7-0 lead with 13:31 to go in the first quarter. Tommy Ulatowski completed an 80-yard touchdown pass to Luke Floriea and Will Hryszko made the extra point. This early lead for Kent State was short-lived as Akron started to make a comeback.

Starting from their own 1, the Zips grab a 23-10 halftime lead on Garrison Smith’s 27-yard field goal on the final play of the first half. Jordan Simmons’ 59-yard run helped dig Akron out of its hole. Simmons has 104 yards rushing on nine carries. Ben Finley has completed 9 of 22 passes for 163 yards. Adrian Norton has four catches for 95 yards. Akron has 154 rushing yards on 17 carries at halftime, while Kent State has 19 rushing yards on 16 carries at the break.

Third Quarter Thrills

Tahj Bullock runs 8 yards for a touchdown with 10:52 to go in the third quarter and Garrison Smith converts the extra point. Akron leads 30-10. The drive included Ben Finley completing a 10-yard pass to Jake Newell and a 12-yard pass to Adrian Norton. Charles Kellom contributed 14 yards rushing on four carries. Finley is 11 of 24 for 185 yards. Norton has five catches for 107 yards.

Fourth Quarter Climax

Garrison Smith’s 26-yard field goal increases Akron’s lead to 20-10. The Zips could have tackled on a little more on that drive. A 29-yard pass from Ben Finley to Adrian Norton on third-and-10 gave them a first down at the Kent State 11. They gained just two yards after that catch.

Kent State hasn’t found away to stop Akron yet. Charles Kellom’s 22-yard touchdown run gives the Zips a 17-7 lead. They drove 91 yards in seven plays. Akron has scored on all three of its possessions.

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Dix Stadium. Akron leads the all-time series with Kent 36-28-2. The teams first played in football in 1923, with the Zips winning 32-0. There are multiple seasons in which the teams have not played in the last 100 years. The Wagon Wheel trophy was introduced in 1946. The teams have played each other every year since 1983 with the exception of one year.

Joe Moorhead is 1-1 against KSU as Akron’s coach, with the Zips prevailing 31-27 in last year’s game at InfoCision Stadium. KSU coach Kenni Burns is 0-1 against UA. KSU won four in a row in the series from 2019-2022 under former coach Sean Lewis. Akron won four in a row in the series from 2015-2018 during the Terry Bowden era.

The Zips and Golden Flashes have played four common opponents in the Mid-American Conference this season. Akron defeated Eastern Michigan 25-21 and Kent State lost 52-33. The other three common foes are Bowling Green (beat UA 27-20, beat KSU 27-6), Western Michigan (beat UA 34-24, beat KSU 52-21) and Ohio (beat UA 30-10, beat KSU 41-0).

Akron’s top four playmakers on offense in last year’s win over Kent State are not with the team this year. Jeff Undercuffler Jr., Lorenzo Lingard and Daniel George completed their athletic eligibility in 2023 and Jasaiah Gathings is now a redshirt junior at Connecticut. Undercuffler completed 23 of 39 passes for 298 yards and two touchdowns, and added a rushing TD. Lingard ran for 106 yards and a TD on 22 carries. George had nine catches for 104 yards a one TD. Gathings added nine catches for 103 yards and a TD.

Akron returns several of its leading tacklers from last season’s KSU game, including senior linebacker Antavious Fish, senior linemen CJ Nunnally IV and Bennett Adler, redshirt junior cornerback-safety Darrian Lewis and junior linebacker Bryan McCoy. Fish had a game-high 10 tackles, including six solo stops. Nunnally added five tackles and one sack.

Kent State returns four key players from last season’s game at Akron: junior QB Tommy Ulatowski, redshirt sophomore receiver Chrishon McCray, graduate senior receiver Luke Floriea and junior defensive lineman Stephen Daley. Ulatowski ran for a TD and completed 15 of 23 passes for 229 yards and three TDs at Akron. McCray had six catches for 161 yards and two TDs, Floriea added four catches for 37 yards and a TD and Daley had eight tackles (five solo).

Redshirt juniors Ben Finley and Tahj Bullock continue to get snaps at quarterback for Akron this season. Finley has completed 188 of 337 passes for 2,160 yards, 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Bullock has completed 19 of 26 passes for 149 yards, run for 85 yards and five TDs on 36 carries and caught 10 passes for 63 yards.

Akron’s offense also features running backs Jordon Simmons and Charles Kellom and wide receivers Adrian Norton, Bobby Golden, Ahmarian Granger and tight ends Jake Newell and Conner Cravaack. Simmons has 99 carries, 551 yards and two TDs rushing along with 21 catches for 183 receiving yards. Kellom has 45 carries for 179 yards and 22 catches for 133 yards and one TD. Norton has 38 receptions for 724 yards and seven TDs. Golden has 29 catches for 424 yards and one TD. Newell has 31 catches for 225 yards and two TDs. Granger has 15 catches for 202 yards and one TD.

The Zips’ leaders on defense are McCoy, Fish, Nunnally, Adler, Darrian Lewis and Paul Lewis III. McCoy has 96 tackles (44 solos), Darrian Lewis has 67 tackles (41 solos) and one interception and Paul Lewis III has 63 tackles (36 solos). Fish has 58 tackles (17 solos) and one sack and Nunnally has 46 tackles (19 solos) and four sacks.

Ulatowski is KSU’s primary quarterback. He has completed 62 of 143 passes for 1,022 yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions. The offense also features running backs Ky Thomas and Curtis Douglas, wide receivers McCray, Floriea, Dashawn Martin and Jay Jay Etheridge and tight end Conner Muldowney. Thomas has 122 carries, 497 yards and one TD rushing. Douglas has 43 carries for 130 yards. McCray has 37 receptions for 612 yards and eight TDs. Floriea has 37 receptions for 547 yards and five TDs. Etheridge and Muldowney each have one TD catch. The Flashes’ leaders defensively are Josh Baka, Rocco Nicholl, Tevin Tucker, Mason Woods, Matt Harmon and Daley. Baka has 73 tackles (51 solos), Nicholl has 61 tackles (30 solos) and Tucker has 50 tackles (32 solos). Kameron Olds has six sacks and one interception. Daley has three sacks and Harmon has two sacks.